Maybe
by deathofabyss
Summary: Years have passed and Nami kept on hoping that her friend would soon come back. Unexpectedly a boat full of soldiers stopped by and there she meets a man who reminded her greatly of the friend she used to have years ago. (One Piece AU LuNa)
1. Prologue

**Prologue**

"Ei!" the orange haired girl shouted as she waved her right hand trying to catch the attention of the raven haired boy. "Oi Luffy!"

"Ah, NAMI! You're here!" the young lad shouted back with a big grin on his face.

The two were really great friends. Each afternoon, the time they would be finished with their own chores and such, they would always meet up by the shore. The two would either play pirates in search of treasure, where Luffy would be the captain and Nami would be the navigator, or talk about one of the dumbest stories they know while eating the oranges Nami had brought.

Luffy ran towards Nami, stretched his arms towards her and gave a peace sign. They both sat down beside each other and let the waves of the ocean wash their feet.

"Ei Nami guess what!" Luffy yelled as he ate an entire orange that Nami had just given him.

"Hmm?" Nami tilted her head wondering what the boy wanted to say. She never knew what he had in mind since the 7yr old boy always blurted out the most unexpected things.

"I'm finally going to be a soldier!" Luffy shouted as he punched the air in front of him. "With Ace and Sabo of course!"

Nami's eyes widened by what Luffy had just said. She knew that the boy had plans on being part of the military. In fact his dad and grandfather were of high rankings in the military! So it wouldn't be a shock if Luffy himself wanted to join.

"Really?!"

"Yeah! Shanks is gonna train us, look he even gave me his really cool hat!" Luffy replied as he pointed at the straw hat rested on top of his hair.

Nami took her attention at the straw hat on top of Luffy's head. She didn't take it to notice at first but when Luffy pointed it out, it did seem a lot like Shanks' straw hat. In fact, Shanks' was the one who's been taking care of Luffy, alongside with Makino, when he's off duty due to Luffy's dad and grandfather being busy. Everyone in the village saw Shanks as a really cool guy who got his morals on the right track, and Luffy always looked up to him.

"Wow! But don't soldiers where helmets you idiot!" Nami replied while giggling.

Luffy flushed red a bit and got a bit ticked off by Nami's remark.

"Y-YOU'RE JUST JEALOUS CAUSE I GOT A COOL HAT AND YOU DON'T!" He shouted as he stood up from his spot pointing his right hand at Nami. "YOU'LL SEE STARTING TOMORROW, I'LL BECOME A REALLY COOL SOLDIER LIKE SHANKS!"

Luffy then took a deep breath and looked straight at Nami waiting for her reply. He knew his friend always had witty rebuttal for everything he has to say, but to his shock, nothing of the sort came out of Nami's lips.

"You're leaving tomorrow?" She asked with a worried look on her face.

Luffy just nodded in reply to what Nami asked.

"Will you come back?" the orange haired girl asked as she bit her lip.

"Hmm." Luffy paused for a bit to think then smiled, "Shishishi, maybe! I'll ask Shanks about it."

Nami then wiped off the gloomy look on her face then smiled in response.

When tomorrow came, Luffy along with Shanks and his older brothers left the village by boat. Nami just stood by the dock watching them leave hoping that it won't be the last time she'll be seeing Luffy.

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**A/N: **Weeew! So this will be my first uh non-one shot fanfic? yeah. I'm really sorry though if the characters might end up being a bit OOC (im working on that) and hopefully I'll be able to finish this despite being busy~~

reviews please D:


	2. Chapter 1

"Give me that!" Nami gritted under her teeth as she grabbed the basket of oranges away from Sanji.

The sun was blazing hot, and the morning just started and she definitely didn't want anyone slowing her down on the job.

"NAMI-SWAN! You might overtire yourself if you carry that basket." Sanji pouted as he walked right beside Nami.

"I'll be fine! I've been doing this for a long time, and don't you have work yourself?" the orange haired girl muttered as she glared at the blonde beside him.

Sanji twitched a bit by the thought of having to go back to work. It's not like he didn't like his job at the Baratie, it was just that he didn't like being with his co-workers seeing how they always fought with each other. Not to mention his dad, Zeff, owns the place, so the amount of scolding he gets just keeps on piling up each day.

"I-I took the day off..." Sanji muttered as he averted his eyes away from Nami.

"Yeah sure." Nami retorted sarcastically and swiftly walked away from Sanji. She didn't want to be bothered anymore and she knew that her sister was bound to be waiting for her in the market.

"W-Wait Nami-san!" Sanji called out, but apparently he was too late. Nami was already lost in the crowd of people. "Ah great, I lost her."

Nami looked behind her to check if Sanji was still following her, and luckily luck was on her side seeing that no blonde haired man was following her. It wasn't like she had anything against Sanji, she really just wanted to finish her work as soon as possible, and she knew for a fact that if Sanji was around, he'll just end up slowing her down.

"Nami! You're finally here." shouted the tanned girl in one of the market stalls.

"Ah, Nojiko! Sorry I'm late." Nami replied as she walked towards her sister.

Nami removed the oranges from the basket and placed each of it on top of the stall. Once she was done, she wiped off the sweat off of her forehead.

"There, that should be good." She told herself with a smile.

"Yeah. I was actually worried that you won't come at all." Nojiko stated in a jokingly way.

"What! Of course I would!" Nami rebuked, "What made you think of that huh?"

"I don't know... Maybe because of someone distracting you?"

Nami just grunted in reply and sat down on the nearby stool. She knew what her sister was implying and who it was pointed at, and that was the very last thing she wanted to happen.

"You know it's nothing like that between me and Sanji." Nami stated with a distant look in her eyes.

Nojiko looked at Nami as she added the finishing adjustments to their stall. She knew what that look in her sister's eyes meant, after all she's been making that look ever since _he_ left.

"Are you still thinking about him?" Nojiko wondered.

The orange haired girl looked up at her sister, but immediately turned away. As much as possible, Nami wanted to avoid the thought of that person, yet she couldn't stop herself from looking back at her childhood days that would never come back.

"I'm... I'm just tired I guess." She replied as she stretched her back, though Nojiko wasn't quite convinced with Nami's reply.

Soon enough, they opened their stall for business alongside the other vendors. Selling oranges in the market was one of the few things the sisters did to make a living. Life was really hard for them ever since their mother died during the raid a few years back, luckily a family friend, Gen, provided them with their daily needs until they could make a living on their own.

"It would be nice if we could sell a lot today." Nami stated with an irritated look as she watched the different people come and go.

"Don't worry, the day only started after all." Nojiko replied in assurance, but Nami could only reply with a sigh.

The two continued managing their shop. Some people stopped by and bought some of their oranges, but others didn't bother. The cycle kept on going like that for a while, and Nami decided to take an orange and eat it herself.

"OI! THE TROOPS CAME TO VISIT! THEY'RE IN THE HARBOUR RIGHT NOW EVERYONE!" A stranger shouted amongst the sea of people.

This caught Nami's attention and looked towards the direction of the harbour. She wanted to go and take a look, but she had to stop herself knowing that she had to help her sister.

"Go ahead." Nojiko pushed her sister away from their stall, "You might end up meeting someone interesting there."

Nami hesitated for a while as she looked at her sister's gentle smile. Looking at it gave her the assurance that it was really okay for her to go, so she turned her back and ran towards the harbour. She ran as fast as she could, her long orange hair gently flowing behind her, and she bit her lower lip hoping to see that one person once again.

* * *

**A/N: **Yaaay!~ So yeah the writing style here is kinda messy... sorry bout that. BUT I AM WORKING ON IT OKAY. anyways thanks for reading~ will update soon *v*

reviews pleaaase~~ 3


	3. Chapter 2

**A/N: **So here's the next chapter!~ sorry if it took long, been busy with school and all that OTL

thanks for the reviews btw!~

* * *

The door creaked open, he could feel the ocean breeze and the sound of the birds flying through the air. He ran towards the ledge of the deck and there he could see it, his home town Fuusha.

The wind blowing the windmills, small shops opening, people trading in new materials, ships docking by the harbour, he could see it all and how he missed seeing all of it.

"I'M FINALLY BACK!" He shouted with his hands up in the air.

After so many years of training and fighting, he was finally back. How long did he wait for this moment? How long did he wait to finally see her? It didn't matter anymore because he was back.

"It's early in the morning and you're making tons of noise already huh, Luffy."

"Ace!"

Luffy turned towards Ace and gave his older brother a big grin. Ace knew how his brother looked forward to this moment, so he could understand how hyped up Luffy is.

"Well we're gonna leave the ship now, so get ready alright?"

Luffy nodded in reply with his grin still printed on his face.

The raven haired boy then placed his straw hat on top of his head and ran after his brother. Luffy didn't even bother changing. He just wore a plain white undershirt, camo pants and combat boots.

Soon enough, all the other soldiers also started preparing themselves to get off the ship. Once the boat was properly docked, all of them went down accordingly, everyone except Luffy of course. He pushed his way out heading for the harbour, and some of the soldiers almost fell off.

"Sorry guys!" Luffy shouted at his fellow soldiers once he set foot on the concrete floors of the harbour, then he ran off to who knows where afterwards.

"Tch. Seriously... He just can't wait can he?" Ace muttered to himself.

"Can't blame him can you?" Marco replied standing by Ace's side.

"MOVE IT!" Nami roared as she pushed away the different people blocking her path.

The orange haired girl was running through the harbour. Her hair was flowing gracefully with the wind, the sound of her footsteps resonating with the crashing of the waves. She didn't want to miss the fleet of soldiers, and did her best to find the ship that they rode on.

She stopped for a while and viewed the bay. Different ships lined together, some were quite plain in design, some looked really elegant with dragon figureheads, and some looked rather eccentric themed with pirate designs, but none looked like a naval ship at all.

"Where is it?" she wondered as she tried to catch her breath from running.

She tried walking a bit further to see the other ships, and to no hope could she see a ship meant for the army.

When she was about to lose hope and give up, Nami suddenly heard two random strangers talking,

"Hey did you hear? The troops finally arrived."

"Really? When?"

"Just now. Apparently they used some ragged old ship, it's just by the end of the bay."

Nami's eyes widened and immediately ran towards the direction that the stranger had just said. She shut her eyes closed, bit her lip and prayed that she won't be too late, and opened her eyes once more and ran even faster.

Once Nami had arrived, she immediately saw the ship the strangers were talking about, and ragged was definitely the perfect description for the ship.

It was actually quite small compared to what she had expected, and the masts had something around it preventing them from falling. The metal things attached to boat were starting to rust, the flags attached to were tattered, and the print on the sails were fading, but the text printed on it was still visible: Going Merry.

"They could have used a better ship..." Nami complained to herself.

She walked a bit closer to it and tried to peek if any soldiers were still inside, but to no luck it was already empty of people. Nami then scanned through the harbour if anyone from the army was present, but yet there was none.

She was too late, she thought to herself.

The orange haired girl gave out a sigh, she knew it was too good to be true but she just couldn't help but hope for it. She then turned her way back to the market where she had left her sister and walked towards it. Nami did her best to remove the sad look on her face since she didn't want Nojiko to feel bad for her, but her attempts were a failure.

"Why am I even thinking of that idiot?" She questioned herself, but she herself knew the answer to that.

He had only left her with that hope, the hope of the word called _maybe_. She greatly held on to it and really did think that he might come back.

She shook her head in attempts of clearing her mind, and all of a sudden she heard a loud ruckus from a certain restaurant.

"HEY THAT MEAT ISN'T FREE! PAY FOR IT!"

"SORRY! BUT THANKS FOR THE MEAL!"

That was definitely an eat and run situation, and Nami wondered who could that idiot be, but she didn't want to get involved by some strange idiot's actions. So the orange haired girl continued walking heading for the market, but when she heard a loud voice behind her calling out to make way, she suddenly saw herself falling to her back.

"ACK!" Nami shouted as she tried to make out of the situation.

"S-SORRY!" said the voice.

Nami then opened her eyes and saw a black haired man right on top of her

"Huh... HUH! GET OFF OF ME!" Nami shouted as she punched the strange man. "YOU PERVERT WHAT DO YOU THINK YOU'RE DOING!?"

"I'M SORRY IT WAS AN ACCIDENT I WAS JUST—"

"PAY ME BACK YOU FOOL!" Shouted a man just far behind Nami and the raven haired stranger.

"SHOOT! WE BETTER GET OUT OF HERE QUICK!" the boy told Nami

"W-wait! What?!"

Before Nami could even stop the raven haired man, the stranger suddenly grabbed her hand, pulled her up and dragged Nami alongside him.

"WAIT! LET ME GO YOU IDIOT!" Nami shouted as she tried to loosen the grip the stranger had on her hand.

"Once we get away from him!" The stranger told Nami with a smile on his face.

Apparently Nami couldn't do anything but run alongside with this stranger even if she didn't want to.

The stranger ran left then right, and headed for an alley and took their stop there. He tried to check if the restaurant owner was still after them, but luckily they had lost him.

"Phew! That was close!" The stranger chuckled. "You okay there?"

Nami looked at the stranger with an angered look and suddenly slapped him right at the face.

"WHAT DO YOU MEAN OKAY? IDIOT!"

"ACK THAT HURTS!" The stranger screeched as he gently touched the cheek Nami had just slapped.

Nami then crossed her arms and glared at the stranger suffer from the slap she had just given him. She didn't know who he was or why he dragged her, but one thing she's sure of is that this stranger isn't anyone dangerous.

"Who are you anyway?" Nami asked still glaring at the stranger.

"Hmm?" the stranger wondered at Nami's question.

"I ASKED FOR YOUR NAME IDIOT!" Nami repeated herself as she stomped the ground in annoyance.

"Oh! I'm Luf—" the stranger paused for a while, then continued. "I'm Lucy!"

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**A/N: **ooh cliff hanger... AHAHJK. not really. Anyways~ hopefully I did okay with the characters... but i really did my best to make them in character all throughout.

As for the next chapter... might take a while to come out cause I'll be having midterms this week, but once it's over i'll definitely update :D

Once again, thanks for the reviews, and just let them come! *A*


	4. Chapter 3

**A/N:** Finally done with my midterms and here is the latest chapter~~

as for why Luffy lied... well... dunno. AHAHAH just keep reading *v*

Now here is chapter 3!~

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For some time now, Luffy kept on eating the oranges that Nami and Nojiko were selling. Nojiko didn't actually know what to do with the current situation; in fact she doesn't even know the current situation between Nami and the stranger. The only thing she knows is that Nami suddenly came marching right back furiously with the raven haired boy following her diligently behind.

"Ei, these oranges are really good!" Luffy muttered as he swallowed his 20th orange.

"THEY'RE FOR SALE YOU IDIOT!" Nami retorted as she punched Luffy, "So you better pay for that!"

Nojiko couldn't do anything as she watched Nami attack and quarrel with the random stranger, and it was quite visible that Nami definitely didn't want to be around this man at all.

"Erhem." Nojiko coughed trying to catch Nami's attention. "So Nami, who is this man anyway?"

Nami suddenly stopped from continuously hitting Luffy and turned her attention towards her sister.

The orange haired girl tried to regain her composure and replied while glaring at Luffy, "He said his name was Lucy or something."

"I see... strange name, for a boy that is." Nojiko stated as she switched her attention from Nami to Luffy.

"Yeah, and quite stupid." Nami added.

Suddenly, Luffy placed the orange that he was about to eat on top of the stall and looked closely at Nami. He was sure he heard correctly what the tanned girl had just called her younger sister, but Luffy just wasn't sure if he was actually ready to believe that he had actually found her.

Nami then noticed how Luffy had been staring at her, she felt rather awkward about it, yet for some reason when she looked back at him, he seemed so familiar.

"W-What are you looking at?"

"She just called you Nami right? So your name's Nami?" Luffy tried to ask politely.

"Well yeah, what about it?" Nami replied with a rather confused look.

"Uhm..." Luffy suddenly didn't know what to say. He tried to look away from Nami, but for some reason he just kept on looking back at her. Who knew that Nami was so different from before, but then again it has been 12 years ever since they last met so of course she had changed.

Nojiko then noticed how awkward the situation turned out and tried to break it up.

"Well I'm Nojiko. Nami's older sister, nice to meet you Lucy!"

Nojiko then reached her hand out in front of Luffy to catch his attention.

Luffy didn't say a single thing and just smiled at Nojiko as a reply; he then took Nojiko's hand and shook hands.

Once he let go of her hand, Luffy stood up from his place, patted off the dust and orange peelings on his camo pants, and wore his signature straw hat.

"Heh, I bet my brother's looking for me, so later!" Luffy told Nami and Nojiko as he slowly walked a few steps away from their stall and continued, "Thanks for the meal by the way! Shi shi shi."

The next thing the two sisters knew was that Luffy was gone and running to who knows where. It left the two rather confused that all of a sudden he just left after knowing their names, but the one who was confused the most was Nami herself. She can't stop herself from thinking that that man reminded her greatly of her childhood friend, but before she could continue on with her memories, she suddenly realized that Luffy, or to be exact, Lucy had just left them without paying for what he had eaten.

"DARN IT! THAT IDIOT DIDN'T PAY FOR OUR ORANGES!"

After he had reached some distance, he stopped running and looked back at the direction of the stall. Images of Nami from her current looks to how she looked like 12 years ago kept on appearing on his mind, it actually made him wonder if she actually recognized him or not, but even if she didn't, Luffy knew for a fact that it would be better off that way.

Luffy then took a deep breath then looked around the vicinity. He started scratching his head and looked for familiar structures.

"Hmmm? Where is this place?"

Yes, he was definitely lost. He even wondered if he should go back to the market and ask for directions, but then he told himself that he wasn't someone like Zoro who's an idiot when it comes to directions. How ironic.

Luffy then started walking to who knows where hoping that he could find someone familiar, and to his luck he saw his brother walking around the streets.

"Ace!" Luffy called out as he ran towards his brother.

"Huh?"

Ace turned around and saw his brother run towards him with a stupid smile on Luffy's face.

"Phew! Did you get lost as well?" Luffy asked when he finally reached Ace.

Ace practically wanted to hit Luffy after hearing what his brother had just asked, but he knew they weren't little kids anymore so he restricted himself from doing so.

"Don't drag me along with your stupidity Luffy." Ace sighed in reply. "Where did you run off to anyway?"

Luffy laughed for a bit and replied to his brother, "Nami!"

Ace gave Luffy a confused look, he actually expected his younger brother to say something rather unexpected, but not this unexpected.

"You mean your friend here 12 years ago?" Ace asked just to make sure.

Luffy just nodded in reply.

"Well that was fast." Ace told himself. "Well let's talk about it when we reach Corvo."

"Tch. Those brats sure are taking their time" said the large figure by the porch as she puffed out some smoke from her cigarette.

"You don't think they actually got lost do you? I mean it's been 12 years after all..." wondered the much smaller figure behind.

The figure snickered, and blew her last smoke leaving the cigarette butts on the ground.

"Better prepare ourselves, you know how dangerous those brats are." The large figure commanded before she entered the house.

"Y-Yes boss!"

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**A/N:** oooh mystery person... JK not really OTL anyways sorry if the writing style here is a bit messy, i wrote this while studying for my midterms

Anyways~ reviews pleaaase 3


	5. Chapter 4

**A/N**: This took a while to finish cause I've been busy with school so yeah I'm really sorry bout that OTL  
And ugh i feel like some are ooc cause my brain is clattered and stuff. sorry OTL

But here is the latest chapter yaaay

* * *

"Are we there yet?" Luffy pouted and walked sloppily.

For the young raven haired boy, it seemed like an eternity have passed as they walked heading for Corvo, a mountain forest nearby Fuusha. Ace on the other hand was quite indifferent about the situation; rather, he just wanted to find that house within the forest as soon as possible.

The much older figure leaped through the forest and looked left and right trying to determine their location, and Luffy followed lazily behind.

Ace then paused for a moment and looked back at his younger brother. He found it rather strange that Luffy wasn't as jumpy as he had expected. Usually in this situation, Luffy would be running around endlessly in attempts of turning everything into a great adventure, but this time he was just plain... lazy.

'He must be hungry.' Ace thought to himself as he faced forward once again and walked onwards.

True enough, Luffy did seem rather hungry. His mouth hung open with a bit of drooling, his eyes as dead and blank as a fish, and his posture was crouched and sloppy. Definitely symptoms of Luffy being hungry.

"Don't worry lil' bro, we're almost there... hopefully."

"Meaaaat." Luffy responded with the grumble of his stomach to match

Ace just shook his head and tried to find their way in the forest, and suddenly a smile formed on Ace's face as he took one last turn in the forest.

"WE FOUND IT."

Luffy raised his head after hearing Ace's words and saw the old half wrecked house.

The raven haired boy immediately ran passed his brother and towards the house breaking the front door open.

"L-LUFFY WAI—Too late.."

"MEAT!" Luffy shouted as he broke the front door open.

Ace walked right behind Luffy and saw the mess his brother had just made. He knew that they were going to get scolded for this, that is if she can scold them. After all, no one can successfully scold Luffy other than their Grandfather and Dragon.

"DARN IT. CAN'T YOU BRATS COME IN NORMALLY!?"

A huge figure suddenly appeared right in front of them holding a giant club in her right hand.

"Sorry about that Dadan, you know how Luffy is." Ace explained as he removed his hat as a gesture of respect.

"Tch. I was hoping that you two would have matured these past 12 years."

"Luffy! Ace! So it was you two!" Dogra greeted along with the rest of the Dadan family.

"WOW! Everyone's here!" Luffy shouted as he ran towards the Dadan family to give them a hug. "I sure missed you guys!"

Ace on the other hand looked at the left behind Dadan and gave her a reassuring smile.

"Well at least he's still his usually cheerful self right?" Ace explained as he watched Luffy glomp over everyone.

"Heh, well at least you act more like an older brother now."

For a moment, despite the loud noises that Luffy and the rest made, silence fell upon Dadan and Ace. Dadan only meant those words to encourage Ace, but then she realized how those words can pierce through the boy.

"Yeah..." Ace responded softly. "I have to... now that Sabo's gone."

In that instant, Ace's eyes were full of guilt and regret. He shut his eyes tightly for a moment to shake off the heavy weight that suddenly fell upon him, and he suddenly felt a soft pat on his back.

Ace opened his eyes and saw Dadan, eyes full of worry and at the same time comforting. Despite her status and rough features, Dadan was like a mother not only to him, but also Luffy and Sabo, that's why he could trust her easily.

"We made lunch. Lots of it." Dadan took a step forward heading for the main hall and looked back, "We knew that you brats would be hungry once you arrived."

* * *

"12 years and you brats didn't even bother to send a single message." Dadan grumbled as she ate her share of the meat.

"So you did miss us." Ace snickered.

Dadan suddenly choked on the meat she was eating after hearing what Ace had just said. She tried to cough it out, and once she was successful in doing so, she tried to explain herself but apparently she was disrupted by the voices beside her.

"She did! The boss was always checking for mail you know!" Dogra stated.

"Yeah, yeah. The boss was really worried as well." Magra added.

Dadan was losing it. She wanted to answer back everyone, but she herself knew that it would be pointless. The bandit could only give out a big sigh and continue eating. Ace on the other hand saw how flustered Dadan was and just gave out a big smile. He knew how much he and Luffy's mother figure kept her feelings to herself, so he just kept quiet and continued eating for Dadan's sake.

"AH DELICOUS!" Luffy shouted enthusiastically.

Everyone suddenly fell silent and stared at Luffy and his bloated stomach as he took in more and more meat into his mouth.

"Stupid brat, your grandfather could have at least taught you some manners as well." Dadan complained.

But before Dadan could complain even more about the arrival of the brother's, Ace suddenly interrupted the two by giving out a slight cough.

"Well now that we're all reunited and comfy, there's something I'd like to ask." Ace stated politely. "Well ask my younger brother that is."

The attention was once again altered from Ace to Luffy.

Luffy placed the meat he was holding in his right hand down and looked up at his brother who was sitting right across him. He for one knew what his brother was about to ask, and he just couldn't shake the sudden feeling of anxiety.

"So how'd the reunion with Nami go?"

At that moment, Luffy felt a sudden chill on his spine and couldn't dare to look at his brother. He tried scratching his cheek a bit hoping to wear off the strange feeling he felt, but before he could even try to give a decent response, one of the bandits butted in.

"Hey this Nami, do you mean the Nami that Luffy had a kid crush on before?"

"Oh yeah! I remember her!" another bandit told in reply.

"But didn't Luffy confess to her before and—"

Suddenly Luffy turned beet red by the statement and slammed the wooden floors they were sitting on.

"I-I DIDN'T CONFESS TO HER!"

Everyone stared at Luffy by his sudden outburst, and Ace on the other hand was enjoying all this, though he didn't really bring up the topic of 'Nami' just to make fun of his little brother, but to find out if Luffy already blew up on the mission. It is Luffy after all.

"So did she recognize you?" Ace suddenly asked with a serious tone.

Luffy realized that Ace wasn't joking around anymore. The raven haired boy then took a deep breath to calm his nerves and replied by shaking his head.

For some strange reason, Luffy was slowly drowning in sadness by his own reply. He wore the hat that was hanging around his neck and wore it on top of his head and stared blankly on the ground. He could feel his older brother and the rest of the bandits watching his movements.

What was he suppose to say after that? Something stupid like usual? Or maybe just give out a lame excuse to leave the room for a moment. He didn't know, but he took a deep breath once more and before he could let out a single word, Ace suddenly stood up from his position and slowly walked away. The brother then stopped by the door to remind Luffy one last thing before leaving the room.

"Just make sure you do your duty right, so you can stay."

Luffy then looked up at his brother and nodded his head.

* * *

"Are you still bothered about the oranges?" Nojiko asked.

Nami just grunted at her question. Of course she was still bothered; in fact she was furious about it! Luffy, or Lucy to be more precise had eaten a good amount of oranges that could last for about 3 days of supply!

"I swear, if I see that idiot again... I'll definitely make him pay!" Nami grumbled, and slowly cursing the raven haired boy for making them lose some income.

Nojiko on the other hand found her sister's behaviour amusing. She hadn't seen her younger sister this irritated for such a long time, excluding the times that Sanji was bothering her of course, seeing how Nami's irritation had a different vibe to it.

"Well you never know Nami, that boy might actually help you forget about Luffy." Nojiko stated as she started packing up their oranges.

Nami's face suddenly formed a bigger frown.

Why would her sister even think of such a ridiculous thing? And in the first place, why would she even say Luffy's name if she was trying to help Nami forget about him?!

"There's no way I'm going near that idiot unless it's about him paying back our oranges." Nami reiterated.

"Right... So you're saying you'd rather be with a boy who confessed to you with the words 'I will crush you'?" Nojiko then sealed the crate of oranges nicely and continued, "Well you always had weird tastes for men, that's one thing I can say."

Nami's cheeks were suddenly flushed red.

"D-DIDN'T I TELL YOU TO FORGET ABOUT THAT!"

"Well what can I say? Best confession I've ever heard." Nojiko giggled.

Nami couldn't say anything back to her sister, she knew for one that she won't be able to beat Nojiko in this one. She just ended up glaring at her older sister and took one of the crates and walked away from their stall.

Nojiko watched her sister leave and shook her head in amusement. She took the remaining crate of oranges and rushed to her sister's side.

Once she caught up with Nami, she smiled at her sister and said, "You know I'm just trying to help you forget about him."

Nami then looked at her sister's reassuring eyes and continued listening to her.

"At the same time help you decide on Sanji's confession."

At that moment, Nami was once again torn apart by her decisions.

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**A/N:** Once again sorry for the delay ;A; and yeah OTL

Anyways reviews pls.~~


	6. Chapter 5

**A/N: **Finally finished another chapter! yay~ and really sorry if the chapters are taking a while to be updated... just that i've been busy with school, and finals will be coming up soon as well so yeah... OTL

Anyways heres the next chapter~ hope you guys enjoy :D

* * *

Morning light shone upon the beautiful town of Fuusha where the people lived simple and peaceful lives, but this wasn't the case for a certain blonde man in Baratie.

"WHAT DO YOU MEAN I HAVE TO WORK THE ENTIRE DAY YOU OLD FART!" Sanji yelled as he tried to reach for the kitchen's exit.

"This is punishment you little runt for slipping out on the job the other day." Zeff retorted as he blocked Sanji's path.

"Tch. Stupid old fart." Sanji scoffed heading the other way leading to the restaurant itself.

Zeff just shook his head, and took the check pad on top of the counter and threw it over to Sanji who caught it without any problems.

"Go and take orders while you're out there."

Sanji grumbled at what Zeff had just ordered him, but before he went out to take orders, he made sure he was presentable. He fixed the collar of his suit and took a deep breath and went to do his job.

"You sure that idiot's here?" A green haired man complained in his chair while his legs rested on top of the table.

"I hope so..." replied the other man with a long nose. "Imagine how much trouble we're gonna be in once we're back in headquarters."

"T-Trouble!? We're gonna be in trouble!?" a young boy with dark brown haired yelped as he drank his glass of water. "Usopp you said you asked permission from the higher ups!"

"Shh!" Usopp tried to signal Chopper to lower his voice down. "We're not suppose to catch attention!"

Zoro watched his two companions and rolled his eyes as he listened to their useless muttering. Unlike them, Zoro was quite calm about the situation. He didn't mind getting in trouble, for one, their higher ups already made a list of all the trouble he's made, and second, their squad was quite known for being notorious seeing as their squad leader was an idiot.

Before Zoro could close his eyes to take a short nap, a blonde haired man stopped by in their table. Zoro noticed how this man seemed irritable, but didn't put much care into it.

"I guess you're the waiter?"

"And I guess you shouldn't be resting your feet on top of the table." Sanji scowled as he glared at Zoro.

Zoro returned the glare and stood up from his seat. He took one of his swords that leaned against the table, slowly unsheathing them and showing no intent of being nice to whoever this guy in front of him was.

Usopp and Chopper suddenly noticed how Zoro was slowly about to engage into a fight with the waiter. Without any moments of hesitation, the two stood up from their seats and stood between the men and tried to stop them from engaging in battle.

"S-Sorry! He's not really a morning person! Please forgive him!" Usopp reasoned out with Sanji. "A-Anyway our order... yeah why don't you just take our order?"

"Z-Zoro no! Please don't kill anyone!" Chopper cried as he tried to pull Zoro away. "We're supposed to be looking for Luffy!"

The glaring and the struggling continued on for a while until a voice was heard from the front entrance of Baratie.

"Owner Zeff?" Nami called out.

Nami looked around carrying a crate of oranges and saw Sanji struggling and urging a fight amongst a group of strangers. All of a sudden, just by the sight of Sanji made her feel rather pale.

"N-Nami!" Sanji called out with glee.

He pulled himself away from the group and ran towards the orange haired girl.

"How lucky I am to be in the presence of such a magnificent lady!" Sanji sang as he held one of Nami's hand and kissed it. "Please let me be of service to you beautiful princess!"

Nami pulled her hand away from Sanji's lips and gave him a sour look.

"Where's your dad?" She asked as she pushed the crate of oranges towards Sanji for him to carry.

"Oh, the old fart..." Sanji suddenly felt irritable once more by the sound of his old man's name.

Nami saw the sudden change of mood on Sanji's face and she only rolled her eyes. She guessed that the two must have had another stupid argument. They always did.

"Yeah, he ordered three crates of oranges, but no one would answer when I knocked at the back door." Nami said pointing outside the door of the restaurant.

Sanji then headed out for the door to grab the remaining crates, but before he did so, he placed the single crate on the floor and lead Nami to an empty table for her to wait in. He allowed her to sit and gave her a warm smile as she sat down.

"Please wait here mademoiselle, I'll just bring all the crates to the kitchen."

Sanji took a bow before he left Nami to get all the crates and carried them to the kitchen.

While Nami sat and waited, she realized that the group of strangers that Sanji was fighting with was still in the restaurant. She tried to take a glimpse of them from her place, and told herself what a weird bunch they were. After taking a good look, she averted her gaze away from them since she didn't want anything to do with them, and she definitely didn't want them to catch her staring seeing how one of them looked like he was about to murder anyone who got in his way, or rather just even by staring at him.

Nami started to grow a bit impatient seeing how Sanji was taking his time in the kitchen. She thought to herself that he was most likely preparing something for her to eat, and as much as she liked Sanji's cooking, she just wanted to get the payment for the oranges and leave already seeing that she still had some work to do.

She took a deep breath, and when she was about to stand up to head to the kitchen, the conversation of the strange group caught her attention. Nami bit her lip and tensed for a while, and decided to stay in her seat to eavesdrop on their conversation.

"Robin said so herself, Luffy is definitely in this island." The boy with brown hair said. "Not sure if this is the town though..."

Nami glanced away from the group as her eyes suddenly widened as she heard the name that was stated by the kid. She was sure that the name she had just heard was Luffy, but could it be the same Luffy that she was thinking about? She glanced back at the group and told herself that Luffy was the type to befriend with anyone, but if he was friends with them then that would only mean that these people were from the military as well.

Nami shook her head in attempts of erasing the thoughts and possibility of Luffy being on the island. He couldn't be right? And if Luffy was in the island, then she was bound to find him already, but she didn't... instead she found another idiot who owes her money to boot!

"Nami? Is there anything bothering you?" Sanji asked as he placed an envelope with the payment for the oranges and a plate with omelette and buttered toasted bread on top of Nami's table.

"Huh? Oh Sanji..." Nami responded trying to get back into reality.

"You seemed rather distracted awhile ago..." Sanji told her seeming a bit worried.

"Ah, no it's nothing! I'm just tired." Nami told Sanji with a reassuring smile.

Sanji gazed upon the smile that Nami had just given him, but he was rather bothered about it seeing how forced it seemed. He wanted to know what was bothering her and let her know that he was there for her, but before he could utter a single word to her, he was suddenly interrupted by the group behind him.

"OI SWIRLY BROWS! When are you going to take our order!?" Zoro yelled out.

* * *

"Ugh. Where are they?" Nami rambled to herself as she marched her way in through the town.

As much as she hated the thought of chasing after them to ask some questions, she had no other choice if she wanted answers. Answers about that missing idiot.

It would have been easier if Sanji hadn't been such an idiot and fought those guys out of the restaurant. Now here she was trying to figure out where they went.

"Why am I doing this...?" Nami asked herself.

What was the point? So what if those people knew who Luffy was, it's not like she'll be able to see him again after 12 years, or he would be with them in this town. Then there was the maybe in all those possibilities. Was she that desperate to see him again?

She shook her head trying to erase all those questions out of her head. She didn't want to be bothered by something so stupid, but she just can't after seeing how a squad of military men suddenly appeared, and now these group of weirdos talking about Luffy.

"Nami? Hey it's me! Luf—Lucy!"

Suddenly, Nami's mood died down by a hundred percent by now after hearing that familiar voice.

She turned around to see an idiotic smile coming from Lucy who is now wearing a red long sleeved unbuttoned cardigan, a bandage around his chest and the same straw hat, instead of his camo pants and white undershirt the other day.

"Great... You better be here to pay me back for those oranges." She ranted as Luffy stood in front of her.

"Oh about that..." Luffy scratched his head still keeping that smile on his face. "Can I not pay for it?"

"LIKE HELL!" Nami gave the back of Luffy's head a powerful punch. "I NEED THAT MONEY TO COVER UP THIS MONTH'S EXPENSES!"

"A-alright..." Luffy muttered as he tried to comfort the bump that appeared on his head.

Nami looked at the somewhat pouting Lucy in front of her as she crossed her arms.

He seemed somewhat pitiful, but she for one knew that he deserved it. Then Nami started to wonder what he was doing appearing in front of her. Coincidence maybe? Not like they had anything to do with each other right?

"Anyway...what do you want?" Nami asked.

Luffy looked at her and straightened his composure and gave her another smile.

"Nothing really! Just wanted to see you."

Nami blinked at what he had just said.

Just to see her? Really? She's not going to buy that answer. He's just there to waster her time for sure she told herself, and she still had work to do so this wasn't the right time for his stupidity.

"Ugh, whatever." Nami waved off with her hand "I'm going back to the market to work."

Nami then turned her back against Luffy and started walking away, but before she could even walk a few steps away from him, Luffy grabbed her hand.

Nami turned her head to face Luffy, and saw him looking right back at her. His eyes seemed determined and at the same time soft.

"Let's hang out!" Luffy told her without letting go of her hand.

"Didn't you just hear me!? I have work to do and—"

Before Nami could even finish her statement, Luffy already dragged her away to who knows where.

He was still holding her hand, and he was running in front of her and she was being pulled along with him. Nami tried to pull away from him, but his grip was to strong and she couldn't do anything but be dragged along with him.

"WHERE DO YOU THINK YOU'RE TAKING ME?!" Nami yelled.

"To hang out!" Luffy replied with a grin on his face.

"Ugh. This is taking up too much of my time." Nami grunted.

Luffy suddenly stopped after Nami's statement and looked back at her. Nami was slightly confused by the sudden stop and saw him looking back at her.

"W-What?" Nami questioned him.

"You're right. You're too slow, can't drag you around with me." Luffy told her.

Nami seemed puzzled by what he had just said, and what did he mean she was too slow? Of course she wanted to be slow, SHE HAD WORK TO DO! And this idiot was definitely not caring about it.

And before Nami could even utter a word to let her go, Luffy suddenly hooked one of his arms behind Nami's knees and the other on Nami's back to carry her.

"W-WHAT DO YOU THINK YOU'RE DOING?!" Nami yelped as she was lifted off of the ground.

"Carrying you." Luffy laughed and started dashing off with her to who knows where.

"AAAH! LET ME GO!"

* * *

"He doesn't seem to be here." Zoro said as he looked around the town.

"Yeah, if Luffy was actually here then there should be some mess going on by now..." Usopp stated as he rubbed his chin.

And as the three walked, Usopp lead the team seeing that if Zoro lead the team, they might end up getting lost even with the guide of a map. Chopper on the other hand walked beside Zoro to make sure he doesn't get lost.

As the three of them walked, they suddenly heard a commotion somewhere behind them.

"HEY WATCH WHERE YOU'RE GOING!"

"MY SHOP! HEY STOP YOU JUST MESSED UP MY SHOP!"

Suddenly when they turned to where the commotion was, Luffy suddenly passed by the trio.

"W-Wait wasn't that..." Usopp tried to complete his sentence.

"LUFFY!?" Chopper shouted.

"Oi, come on!" Zoro commanded as he dashed after their leader. "We better run after him before we lose him."

"AH ZORO'S GONNA GET LOST AGAIN!" Chopper panicked as he tried to run after Zoro.

"ZORO DON'T GO! OR ELSE WE'LL BE THE ONE LOSING YOU!" Usopp shouted as he ran after Zoro.

* * *

**A/N: **And finally the other members of the crew finally appeared!

Anyways hope you guys enjoyed this chapter, and dunno when i'll update this again... BUT IT WILL BE UPDATED! so yuh...

reviews please~ :D


	7. Chapter 6

**A/N: **And here is the next chapter!~ sorry if it took so long OTL you know how school is... but here it is :D  
and i am sorry for a ton of things, and one, im sorry if the characters seem rather ooc here /imma crey, second, sorry if there are tons of errors in this chapter... i was too lazy to proof read OTL

but anyways... enjoy!~ :D

**[UPDATE: **not really important but i finally proof read it and changed some mistakes...**]**

* * *

It was almost noon and Nami hasn't returned at all. Nojiko even planned on looking for her sister, but thought against it. She knew that Nami was old enough to take care of herself, and at the same time, she can't just leave the stall without anyone managing it.

For some strange reason, she had this feeling her sister was safe.

Nojiko sighed and told herself that maybe this was a good opportunity for her sister to relax, or keep her head away from work. Seriously, Nami was just too caught up with work, earning money and all that stuff. Her sister needed a break.

* * *

"LUFFY!" Usopp yelled as he walked down the grassy field.

"We were so close to seeing him again." Chopper sulked.

"Tch. We lost him." Zoro complained as he stood from his spot with his arms crossed.

Usopp felt dumbstruck as he heard what his friend had just said. He knew that Zoro was one of the reasons why they lost Luffy, heck the green haired man actually ran the opposite way from where Luffy was running off to!

"We're never going to find Luffy!" Usopp yelled, "And worse of all, we're lost in a place we don't even know! WE MIGHT EVEN DIE!" obviously Usopp was once again exaggerating things

"D-DIE?" Chopper screeched. The brunette was too gullible for his own good.

"Whatever, let's just keep on searching for Luffy." Zoro yawned

Zoro then started walking to who knows where hoping that this stupid goof chase for their squad leader would be over with.

The other two then saw the swordsman walking away from them without even taking into consideration where he was going to. Usopp and Chopper on the other hand ran after him in hopes that they don't lose sight of the man with the worse navigational instincts. It was already hard enough for them looking for Luffy, and if they lose Zoro now as well, that would mean more searching thus more work which is bad. Not to mention, the two took into consideration that if Zoro got lost to who knows where, who would protect them if they got into trouble?

"Zoro! Don't leave us, you might get lost!" Chopper yelled as he tried to catch up to Zoro.

"Seriously, are these guys really belittling me?" Zoro muttered under his breath as the two finally caught up with him.

* * *

A few hours had gone by since Luffy took off with Nami in his arms.

The raven haired boy had walked around carrying the irritable girl. The two went through a crowded town, passed by a dock on the other end of the town, walked by the shore, and entered a forest leading to who knows where.

"UUGH. When are you putting me down!" Nami growled as she crossed her arms while being carried away by Luffy. "Where are you even taking me!?"

"We should be near." Luffy hummed, as he leapt over rocks, and avoided the branches obstructing their way.

Nami just gave an annoyed sigh by Luffy's humming. As much as she didn't want to be carried off by some stranger whom she just met a few days ago, she couldn't do much seeing that struggling against him was futile. No matter how much she fought against him, the raven haired boy would just tighten his grip on her making sure he doesn't drop her at the same time walking at a faster pace to get to their destination as soon as possible. So in the end, Nami couldn't do anything but give in on the stupid boy's wishes.

The girl then gave out another sigh, but this time much calmer. She closed her eyes and opened them as she looked up at sky which was slightly blocked out by the branches and leaves of the different trees. Some birds flew by, and some were resting on the branches singing unknown tunes that calmed her nerves.

Soon her gaze was transferred to the man who was carrying her. His dark hair which was mostly covered by his ragged straw hat, then Luffy's eyes which were filled with joy and innocence, at the same time familiar. She didn't get it, but it was as if she had gazed upon them a long time ago, yet it was hidden behind him. Then her sight went to the scar under his left eye. She could see how badly treated it was, and it made her wonder how he got the scar in the first place. Then it made her remember that he was part of the military, so obviously he would get some scars right? It somewhat made her feel stupid for wondering such a thing.

She kept her gaze on Luffy for a while which for some reason made her feel so relaxed. She felt so at home being carried away by his arms, feeling his warmth with hers, and just him being with her. Everything, the feeling, the moment, and him, it feels just like how she was with that friend of hers 12 years ago.

Nami suddenly went back to reality and realized what she was thinking. In fact, WHAT WAS SHE EVEN THINKING?! She scolded herself through her thoughts, and at the same time shook her head to erase all those stupid ideas that came to her. It was stupid of her, stupid that it made her irritated.

Luffy saw how Nami suddenly shook her head and wondered by her sudden actions, was something bothering her? He didn't know, and decided not to pay much attention to it and kept walking.

Suddenly, the faint sounds of crashing water was heard from the distance which brought out a bright smile on Luffy's face.

"We're almost here!" He shouted with glee.

"Huh?" Nami wondered

In an instant, Luffy rushed towards the direction of the sound, while Nami on the other hand held on to Luffy hoping that he doesn't drop her with his sudden change of speed.

"AAAH! YOU IDIOT"

* * *

Luffy had finally came to a stop, but Nami still held on to Luffy tightly, still frightened that she might fall off of his arms.

When she realized that they had really stopped moving, she slowly loosened her grip around his neck and saw him looking at her with that stupid smile on his face.

"We're here!"

Luffy then gently let go of Nami, finally letting the girl stand on her own two feet. But when she was finally able to stand on her own, the orange haired girl suddenly slapped the back of Luffy's head.

"OW! WHAT WAS THAT FOR!" Luffy yelped.

"FOR KIDNAPPING ME! IDIOT." Nami growled at him.

Nami then prepared herself to give the boy another hit on the head, but halted by the sound of running water. The girl loosened the fist that she was about to hit Luffy with and took into notice their surroundings.

She was in sudden awe by what she saw in front of her. A wonderful and well preserved grotto was right in front of them. She saw the beautiful rock formations which were embraced by vines and moss, some trees still surrounding the grotto. Then she took into notice how she could feel sand touching the sides of her feet. There was also a lake in the center of it all, and a waterfall that fell from one side of the rock formation.

The place was like a dream to her, paradise. Nami walked towards the shore of the lake, knelt down and dipped her finger on the crystal clear water. It was really like a dream, yet it wasn't. This place wasn't just a dream, but a far off memory.

This was the place where she would always meet him, and this was also the place where he had left her 12 years ago.

Nami bit her lower lip and brought her hands to cover her face. She wanted to remember, yet she wanted to forget as well. She didn't know, she was lost, that after 12 years of holding it in she was finally losing it.

'_Make it stop'_

She tried telling herself but she could feel the tears slowly forming, thoughts of fear slowly clouding her mind. Her greatest fear slowly creeping up to her and surrounding her thoughts, fear that was connected to that friend of hers. That fear wasn't about him not coming back home, no it was something worse. It was the fear that he could have died during a mission of sorts, and she wouldn't even know about it. That all this time that she was waiting, she was just waiting for nothing, and the thought haunts her each passing day.

And in an instant she was snapped out of these thoughts by the touch she felt on her shoulder and a voice calling out to her.

"H-hey Nami... You okay?"

Nami slowly placed her hands down to her lap and saw worried and anxious eyes looking right at her.

She looked away, but she could still feel his gaze upon her and his hand still on her shoulder. The orange haired girl then took a deep breath and let it out. She tried to clear her head first before she gave her reply.

Seeing that no words could come out of her mouth, she looked back at the raven haired boy still looking at her. She gave him a slight nod and a reassuring smile saying that she was fine.

Luffy saw her response, and finally let go of her shoulder and plopped down on the sand while his feet touched the lake.

"Phew. I thought you were mad at me for a while." Luffy laughed out the thought.

Nami then stared at the boy by his sudden remark.

She sighed, and removed the sandals that her feet wore and placed it beside her. She then stretched her legs forward letting the lake's water wash the sand off of her feet and lied beside the raven haired boy.

There was a moment of silence as the two watched sky which was much more visible now compared to what she could have seen in the forest.

"Hey Lucy..."

"Hmm?"

"Why did you bring me here?"

Luffy jerked up from his spot letting his straw hat fall off of his head. He didn't really expect Nami to ask such a question and ended up scratching his head.

"I dunno really" Luffy gave out forced laugh as he looked away.

'_I'm lying dammit. Please don't let her notice...'_ he told himself as he printed this stupid look on his face.

"Oh..." Nami replied.

Luckily she didn't see through Luffy's lie seeing how she was too preoccupied by her own thoughts.

The girl then sat up from her spot, now looking at the crystal clear lake in front of them. Images of the past were playing right in front of her.

Luffy then looked at the somewhat disoriented girl beside him not knowing what to do to make her feel better.

Maybe it was a bad idea to bring her here, he thought to himself. Then again, it was already a bad idea when he had to carry her all the way here seeing how she struggled away from him halfway through the trip.

Luffy then tried to think things through, think of ways to cheer the girl up, but it was an utter failure. It ended up giving him a head ache causing some imaginary steam to come out of his head.

His concentration was suddenly broken when he heard a sigh.

"I used to go here a lot before."

Luffy's eyes suddenly widened by what he had just heard, his mouth slightly open due to the shock. He looked at the girl beside him, her eyes were reminiscent, yet calmer compared to what he witnessed a while ago.

"R-Really?" Luffy asked as he scratched his cheek with his index finger. Sweat was sliding down his face.

"Yeah... but I stopped eventually around 12 years ago." Nami told the boy as she tried to force out a laugh. She didn't actually know why she was saying this to some total stranger, and a stranger who actually kidnapped her and brought her to this place.

"WHAT! WHY? DIDN'T YOU LIKE THIS PLACE!? I MEAN-" Then Luffy realized he was gonna blow his cover.

"U-uhm..." Nami looked at the raven haired boy beside her.

"I-I mean why did you stop? You know... look pretty lake with water...falls..." real smooth Luffy. He was practically sweating hard right now with that dumb lying look on his face.

Nami then looked at the boy awkwardly and suspiciously, but just shrugged it off. He was really weird anyway.

"Yeah, this place really is pretty, and special." Nami told him as she took a good look at her surroundings then continued, "but I just wanted to forget some things, or at least try to let go of..."

She couldn't bring herself to continue. She could feel herself holding her tears back, but she won't let them get to her, not now.

"I just wanted to forget... a friend of mine 12 years ago."

Luffy felt a sudden shock to what he had just heard. He felt pain, and at the same time guilt and he didn't even know why. Was it because of what Nami was feeling inside her? He didn't know, but he definitely won't let her think of such things. Not with him around.

"WHAT DO YOU MEAN FORGET!?" Luffy yelled as he stood up from his spot, and Nami suddenly looking at him with pure shock of his sudden outburst.

"YOU CAN'T JUST FORGET YOUR FRIEND LIKE THAT! DIDN'T I—" Don't slip now Luffy "DIDN'T YOUR FRIEND EVER TELL YOU THAT FRIENDS ARE FOREVER!"

"W-What..?" Nami gaped with utter shock by what he was saying, and some of it even sounded a bit childish.

Luffy then took a good look at her and her shocked expression. He tried to catch his breath from the sudden shouting. The more he looked at her the more he lost his breath and he just doesn't get it.

"UUUGH!" the boy then turned away from her and started scratching his head nonstop not understanding what he should say next.

"L-Lucy...?" He was getting weirder by the minute.

This time Luffy was walking in circles, then rolled on the sand, then jumped up and down. He was practically moving nonstop and she didn't even know why. Then it hit her.

She couldn't help but giggle. His tantrums reminded her a lot of her friend before, and most of all his stupid little speech about friends. Maybe this was some stupid coincidence.

Luffy then pouted and looked at her when he heard her giggling.

"W-What are you laughing about? Nothing's funny."

Nami shook her head in response and looked at the man beside her who was once again sitting down.

"Hmm?" Luffy tilted his head.

Nami then smiled at him.

"Well... You just remind me a lot of my friend from 12 years ago."

Luffy's eyes then lit up.

"You could say we used to hang out here a lot..." Nami's eyes then turned away from Luffy, and gave off a distant look. "Which is why I stopped going here once... once he left."

The light it Luffy's eyes suddenly faded.

He then saw Nami looking back at him, but this time he felt like the world just fell upon him.

Nami had tears streaming down her cheeks, yet she tried to give off a smile to assure him that she was just fine.

Luffy wanted to reach out for her, but what will he do once he does? This just wasn't his thing, but before he could make a move, Nami started talking again.

"You see, we would always meet each other here, in this very spot, this very shore once we were done with our chores and everything." Nami wiped some of her tears away and continued, "We would play tons of things, and talk about a lot of stupid stuff, and we would tell each other anything... anything at all."

Luffy stared at Nami as she went with her story.

"One time he even confessed to me you know!" she gave out a little laugh, "I didn't even think he would have feelings like those you know, and his confession was an utter failure."

Luffy's cheeks suddenly showed a tint of pink.

"Instead of saying _I like you,_ he said, _I will crush you! _And I got so mad at him that time cause I took it literally that I hit him and ran away. I didn't see him for a week." A small smile started tugging Nami's lips, "Then when I grew older, only then I realized what he had meant, and I felt bad for what I did..."

Then there was a moment of silence.

"But what sucks is that... When he left was the only time I realized I liked him too... I guess." The girl started combing her hair with her fingers. "I mean it might have just been a kid crush, but it still won't change the fact that I might have had feelings for him... and might still do..." but she only whispered the last few words hoping that the boy won't hear her girlish confessions.

Luffy on the other hand was feeling this strange warmth all of a sudden. His cheeks were now red, and his heart was beating heavily.

He heard what Nami had just said, that she used to like him before, even though it was only a kid crush, but it didn't change the fact that she did feel something for him. He heard something after those words though it wasn't clear seeing that she only whispered the last few words.

Curiosity was taking over him, he wanted to know something. If it was still possible even after these years, even if he can't tell her who he is, he had this stupid urge to know.

"D-Do you still like that guy?" Luffy asked with a pout.

Nami was shocked by what the man had just asked, in fact she didn't even expect him to listen at all.

She then gave some thought to what he had just asked trying to get her feelings on the right track, the she gave out a sincere smile and finally gave her reply.

"Maybe!"

* * *

**A/N:** So what do you guys think? OOC? i know im really sorry about that OTL  
anyways thanks for the reviews as well~  
and yes pls review cause it motivates me and helps me a lot improve my writing ;A;


	8. Chapter 7

**A/N: **Whoa another update again? yeah im shocked too. AHAHAHA. anyways here's the next chapter~ also~ this chapter will finally have some hints about your questions... which is on why Luffy lied. Only hints though AHAHHA. and yes flashback we have a flashback in this chapter~ anyways sorry once again if they seem rather OOC OTL

* * *

The weather: rainy.  
Despite this, the people won't stop from getting their drinks at the bar. To be more exact, in Partys Bar.

A man was sitting by the counter. He wore a purple half zipped hoodie that showed a white undershirt under it. He also wore dark blue denim jeans which had a belt strapped around the waist to hold a gun on the right side and a knife on the other. The man had blonde hair which sported a pineapple like hairdo.

"Here's your drink Sir Marco." The bartender, Makino, gave a chilled bottle filled alcohol and a glass to pour it into.

"Thanks Makino." The man replied with a smile.

Marco then poured some alcohol in his glass as Makino walked back to the other end of the counter to wipe some of the recently washed glasses. Marco turned around a bit to check if anyone was entering the bar, but apparently none. He saw the other costumers laughing and drinking all their worries away from their tables. The blonde then turned away and now rested his left arm on top of the counter as he held the glass with his right hand. He was waiting for someone, and he did so patiently.

The entrance door suddenly creaked opened, either signalling that another customer has entered or another had just left. Marco didn't bother to turn around to check seeing that staring at his drink and taking a few sips kept him occupied.

"Hey Makino, been a long time."

Makino looked up to check who had just greeted her and saw a young raven haired man, his face had freckles, his head covered by an orange hat with two smileys connected by read beads. The boy wore a yellow unbuttoned long sleeved polo which were rolled up to his elbows and under it was a white undershirt, his shorts which were until his knees were black in color and had a belt around it.

The bartender was shocked once she recognized who the man was standing by the counter beside Marco.

"Ace! You've grown so much." Makino told the young man with a bright smile on her face handing out a clean glass. "How are you? And is Shanks doing well?"

"Just fine, tired from babysitting some idiot though... and Shanks is fine back in the headquarters." Ace replied as he sat on the chair beside Marco's and took the glass from Makino and poured some alcohol in it.

"I see, so I guess Luffy really is back as well."

The raven haired man almost chocked on his drink as he heard Luffy's name from Makino's mouth. He knows that he said he was babysitting an idiot, but he didn't expect her to guess correctly on who that idiot was. In fact that idiot being with them was supposedly a secret from everyone in town.

"Heh. Sorry Ace, but I had to tell her." The blonde stated without any hint of guilt.

Ace had shown an irritated look towards the blonde, and as much as he wanted to get mad and yell at him, he couldn't seeing that Marco was one rank higher than him in their fleet.

"Wasn't that information supposed to be disclosed to the squad only?" Ace asked still annoyed by the fact that Marco had just revealed Luffy's whereabouts.

"It's fine, Makino won't tell anyone. And Shanks is bound to tell her about it soon enough." Marco assured Ace.

Ace couldn't say anything back and just sighed. He was hoping that Marco, head of the expedition squad, would give more importance and care for the information of Luffy's current whereabouts.

Makino on the other hand decided to leave the two young men seeing that they were talking about rather confidential things. She did want to listen, but she already had the information she needed from Marco and she was just glad that Luffy and Ace were really safe after all this time. The news about Sabo was heartbreaking though, but she can't let this get to her so she ended up delivering more drinks to the other customers.

"I'm quite amazed your brother hasn't disrupted anything yet." The blonde laughed as he took another sip from his drink.

"Tch. If you won't include all the eat and run incidents, then sure."

"Guess he's following his older brother's footsteps."

Ace twitched at the remark.

"HEY SHUT IT." Ace scowled, but Marco only laughed at his sudden outburst.

Ace then tried to calm himself down. He drank a few sips from his glass and scratched his head. He knew that he was too stressed out about their mission, well not the mission itself, but the extra they got with it which was Luffy. Heck Luffy wasn't even supposed to be with them in the first place! But the younger brother just had to beg his way to come with him instead of staying put in the headquarters. Now he's got his hands full trying to make sure that his idiotic brother doesn't do anything stupid that would catch too much attention, and at the same time keeping a lookout from any possible enemy attack. This was extremely exhausting, even for him. Sometimes Ace wonders how Luffy's team could even keep up with that bundle of extreme energy around. But one thing for sure is that currently, Ace is nothing but full of worry.

"You should relax more you know."

Ace gave Marco a confused look. The blonde wanted him to relax, but how can he? Sometimes Marco was just too relaxed, but then that calmness maybe is one of the reasons why the man can think straight even in the most dire of situations.

"You see, I got a message from headquarters awhile ago."

"What?" This made Ace somewhat anxious. Was something bad about to happen? "What did they say?"

"The headquarters was attacked." Marco replied with a straight face. "Only a small one though, not something the headquarters can't handle.

The last statement gave Ace a sigh of relief, but it was immediately shattered once Marco continued what he was saying.

"You could say that the opposing team is making their move."

"Are they heading here?" Ace gritted his teeth. This was definitely bad news.

"Don't think so. Unless they got some information about his whereabouts, which I highly doubt." Marco filled his glass with alcohol as he continued. "Nico Robin is quite careful with securing all military information from outsiders, and Franky had the artillery ready even before the attack. Your brother is quite lucky to have such talent in his squad you know."

Ace just nodded as he listened to the information Marco was giving him. He was still worried, too worried.

Marco saw it in Ace's face, and he couldn't do anything but sigh. He knew Ace currently has a lot on his plate, and as much as he and the rest of their team wanted to help him, the man just kept on refusing and told them that he was perfectly fine. But this time Marco was determined push that load off of Ace.

"You can't protect him forever you know."

Ace's eyes widened by what he had just heard. He didn't expect a sudden change of topic, and from all the topics, it was the one he wanted to avoid the most.

"Luffy might have been a weakling in the past, but he's stronger now and you know it, one of the strongest in the entire force to be precise. So stop worrying about needing to protect him, and if anything were to happen, his team is there to back him up, heck the entire army is, not just you." Marco glanced at Ace who was now staring at the empty glass that he was grasping, and then the blonde continued. "And I'm quite sure you don't know yet, but apparently three members from Luffy's squad sneaked out of headquarters and are currently here. Our men were actually able catch them and the three are currently staying with the rest of our squad being watched."

"What?" Ace's head shot up to face Marco once he had heard that members of Luffy's team were on the island now.

"It's not shocking you know, they are quite loyal to their captain." Marco then took one deep breath. It was about time he told Ace this. "But the point is Ace... Stop thinking that you have to atone for Sabo's death."

Silence.

The world seemed to have stopped for Ace. He couldn't hear anything except for one thing, not the laughter of the customers, not the creaking noise of the floorboards, and not the sound of glass clashing with one another. No, it was the sound of what Marco had just told him.

'_Stop thinking that you have to atone for Sabo's death.'_

The words kept on ringing inside his head nonstop. Was he really atoning for his brother's death? He didn't know. Ace couldn't think straight, images of Sabo's death flashing before his eyes, Sabo dying in front of him and Luffy, the death of one of his brothers. It was playing like a video on repeat with Marco's words.

* * *

"DAMN IT." Ace gritted under his teeth.

"Don't worry Ace, back up should be coming soon." Sabo assured Ace as he tended to Luffy's injuries.

The three were on their own and hidden in a broken down building waiting for back up and in hopes that the enemies won't find them anytime soon. They knew they were at a disadvantage seeing how their formation was easily destroyed and now they were dealt with horrible damages. Some of their comrades had died or were severely injured and close to death.

Luffy was one of those who were nearing death. The boy had received a fatal injury on his chest and some minor ones around his body due to an explosion, and now the boy was unconscious. He was lucky that his brother's were there to find him and carry him to safety, and now here they were struggling for their survival.

"There, all done." Sabo said as he wiped off the sweat off of his forehead with the back of his hand and kept the excess bandages inside his pocket.

The blonde was finally finished applying first aid on Luffy, but he knew that this wasn't enough to keep their younger brother alive. It scared him that he couldn't do anything else to help his younger brother, but as he saw the raven haired boy in pain and shaking, Sabo took off the camo suit of his uniform and used it to cover Luffy's upper body to keep the boy warm.

"How did this happen...?" Ace asked as he sat beside Luffy.

"Ace..." Sabo saw the pain in Ace's face.

The two sat on either side of their younger brother, making sure that nothing bad would happen to him anymore.

" How can I let Luffy—" Ace gritted his teeth once again. "If only we came earlier then Luffy would have been..."

"Ace, this isn't anyone's fault." Sabo didn't know how to comfort Ace, but he had to try.

Before the blonde could continue, a sudden explosion suddenly came from nearby causing some rubble fly their way.

"WHAT THE—" The two shouted as they fell on the ground and tried to take cover from the unexpected explosion.

"DAMN IT!" Ace cursed under his breath. "WE NEED TO GET LUFFY OUT OF HERE!"

Ace carried Luffy on his back and Sabo took the rifles and the last grenade with him, then the two older brothers made a run for it. The building was slowly showing signs of giving in, the building was going to collapse soon due to that sudden attack and if they don't make it out fast, then they're done for.

"HOLD IT YOU THREE!" a voice shouted from behind.

Bullets were shot towards the trio, and Sabo turned his head to see who it was and the number of people attacking them. There were around five well armed men running after them.

"Ace we need to get out of here!" Sabo said as he faced his brother who was carrying the youngest brother.

"You think?" Ace replied as he tried to gasp for air.

The two tried to run faster, but it was failing horribly. The two of them were too tired, and Ace had to carry Luffy while dodging the fired bullets. It was impossible for them to outrun their enemies while dodging the bullets and at the same time get out of the building. If this wasn't the worse situation yet, then the almost collapsing building will.

'_Almost there... Almost there...'_

They were finally reaching it, they were almost out of the building.

"ARGH."

Ace then came into a halt and turned around. He saw Sabo down on the ground attempting to stand up, but he just fell every time.

"S-SABO!" Ace ran towards Sabo and saw the blood that was coming out of his brother's leg. His brother was shot. "No..."

"Ace, I'm fine... just go ahead with Luffy." Sabo told Ace as he tried to push him forward telling him to go on ahead.

"NO! You're not sacrificing yourself, got that!" Ace grabbed the blonde's arm and tried to pull him up, "We're getting out of this together! I'll help you get out of here come on!"

The enemies stopped firing, and prioritized on running towards the trio.

"A-Ace... Sabo..." Luffy winced, but was still unconscious.

Sabo looked at Luffy over Ace's shoulder, and was pained to see his youngest brother go through such things. He didn't deserve it, his brother was too simple minded to get involved in such torture and knowing that, Sabo knew he had to do something, something to make his brothers live, even if it will pull him apart from them.

"Ace just go, I'll handle this." Sabo said as he gave Ace the two rifles, his eyes unwavering and determined to keep the two alive. "Trust me... at least for Luffy's sake."

'_No, no, I can't'_

Ace was lost, he didn't know what to do and the enemies were coming closer each second. He couldn't just leave Sabo behind, he can't leave his brother behind in this hell hole of a battlefield. Not here.

"We're brothers aren't we?"

Ace then looked up to see Sabo smiling despite their situation.

"And as brothers, we should trust in each other." Sabo then closed his eyes, and then opened them once again to look at Ace. "Trust me in this one."

Ace took one deep breath, and saw the two rifles in front of him. He took one of them and shoved them to Sabo. "Then at least take this to keep yourself alive, idiot."

Sabo held the rifle and glanced at it for a while then switched his attention to Ace who now stood up and faced the exit.

"I'll get some back up, so you better stay alive got that!"

"Right..." Sabo looked down once again at the rifle, he smiled at it and looked up at Ace. "It's a promise."

Ace nodded and started running towards the exit, and Sabo watched the two slowly drifting away from him. He placed the rifle down and tried to take hold of something in his pocket, and turned around once more to see his brothers. He held the item in his hands tightly, then that's when Sabo saw it. Luffy slowly drifting back to consciousness, trying to look around his area with a rather confused look, then the younger brother turned around to see him.

"Luffy..." Sabo whispered to himself.

The young man held the item tighter, feeling somewhat guilty for what he's about to do.

"YOU THERE DON'T MOVE!" the five soldiers were just a few feet away from Sabo now. The men held their guns aimed at Sabo and prepared to make a move anytime the blonde had planned to do anything funny.

Sabo wasn't the least scared of the five men who were about to shoot him, not at all. When he finally saw that his brother's were a few steps away from the building, he stared at the object he took from his pocket and gave out a sigh.

"You two finally made it out... now it's my turn." Sabo whispered to himself.

A grenade.

Sabo held it with one hand, and his other holding the pin.

"FOOL! PULL THE PIN THEN WE'LL SHOOT YOU!" one of the men shouted.

"It's time to end this."

In an instant, Sabo pulled the pin from the grenade and let go of the object waiting for it to hit the ground, waiting for it to claim their end.

In five... four... three...

Two...

One.

The building was gone, Ace and Luffy were blown a few feet away from where they originally were. They were still alive, but now Ace had more scratches due to some of the rubble hitting him as he tried to cover for Luffy.

"What the..." Ace coughed out as he tried to see through the smoke that suddenly enveloped the area.

Then that's when Ace saw it. The building where they originally were was nothing but rocks now. Gone.

Ace's mind went blank for a while, unable to grasp the situation they were in, and the events that had just taken place. Sabo was in that building, but now that building was gone.

"S-Sabo..."

A voice caught Ace's attention, and he saw Luffy was finally conscious, but was still unable to move due to his injuries. Then Ace noticed something. Luffy was shaking, eyes dilated, and skin pale.

"S-Sabo... G-grenade..." Luffy tried to bring the words out from what he had just seen before leaving the building. "Sabo... Grenade... Hand..."

In that moment, Ace could feel himself drowning. Though Luffy only said some words, he knew what the younger brother meant. He knew what Sabo had done, what his brother had done... behind their backs.

Sabo... was gone.

* * *

"I'm not—"

"Don't deny it." Marco stopped Ace. "Everyone can see it, and it's been two years already since he had died. Stop blaming yourself for something you never did."

No, Ace just couldn't do that. He knew he was at fault for what had happened to his brother two years ago. He knew that he shouldn't have left Sabo alone there, that he should have dragged him along with them, but he didn't and now he was gone. And right now, he's close to losing Luffy as well, and he can't accept that. He lost one brother already, and he can't lose another. Just one wrong move, and he really will lose Luffy, and he can't make that move.

"What do you expect me to do then?" Ace muttered.

"..."

"WHAT DO YOU EXPECT ME TO DO THEN? I CAN'T JUST LEAVE MY BROTHER ON HIS OWN!" Ace was losing his temper. He as now standing up from his spot, his hands slammed on the counter. "I CAN'T—"

"Ace." Marco watched Ace as he tried to calm himself down.

Slowly, Ace sat back in his chair, his face covered by his hands.

"I can't make the same mistake..."

Silence entered the bar, everyone's attention were on the two men by the counter. Wondering what was the sudden outburst was about, what the two men were talking about, but before they could find out more, Makino had asked all of them to leave for the day. She knew that the two will need more space now to clear things up. And within minutes, the bar only consisted of three people, Marco, Ace, and Makino herself who was now headed for the kitchen to leave the two alone.

When Marco saw that they were alone, he took a deep breath and continued from where they had stopped.

"Just live, Ace"

Ace looked at Marco, somewhat confused by what the blonde had just said.

"What?"

"For now, just live... to support your brother." Marco then glanced over Ace. "Live, then get stronger. That way, when the time comes where he really needs your help, you can be there to protect him."

Marco then stood up from his spot, took some money out of his pocket and left it by the counter and slowly walked away leaving Ace to think.

Ace's mind was blank. Still absorbing what Marco had just told him, but it felt too much for him. He was so unsure of himself, and didn't know whether what he was doing now was right or wrong. What was he really supposed to do?

"Damn it."

* * *

**A/N: **So how was it? sorry if there weren't any LuNa interactions here :( but hey~ how did you guys like the flashback?

reviews please~


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